California fracking regulations proposed

Published 5:15 pm, Friday, November 15, 2013

Oil companies would need a specific permit to frack a well in California and would have to notify neighbors at least 30 days in advance of the procedure, under regulations proposed Friday by state officials.

The draft regulations also would require companies to reveal the chemicals they use in hydraulic fracturing or acidization, two controversial techniques for wresting oil and natural gas from shale formations deep underground. The companies would have to monitor nearby groundwater supplies, checking for contamination.

"Overall, you'll find these regulations include the strongest and most comprehensive public protections of any oil- and gas-producing state," said Mark Nechodom, director of the California Department of Conservation, which issued the proposed rules.

"At the same time, these regulations are designed to ensure that the oil and gas industry, which is a key element of the California economy, will remain productive," he said.

Revised rules

The rules are significantly stronger than an earlier set of draft regulations issued by the department late last year, regulations that wouldn't have required companies to obtain a permit. The earlier proposal also would have given the public just three days' notice before a well would be fracked.

The changes came after Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill in September to regulate fracking and other well-stimulation techniques, legislation that drew fire from oil companies and environmentalists alike. The new law also requires the state to conduct a comprehensive study of fracking's potential risks.

Questions about the safety of fracking and acidizing have taken on increased urgency as oil companies try to tap the Monterey Shale, an immense rock formation stretching beneath the southern San Joaquin Valley and the adjacent coastal hills. The Monterey Shale could hold 15.4 billion barrels of oil, according to federal estimates, making it the largest such formation in the United States.

Although the oil industry fought to block the new law, known as SB4, an industry trade group on Friday gave the proposed rules cautious praise.

"These regulations are extensive but strike the right balance that will result in an environmental platform which will ensure that the potential energy resources contained in the Monterey Shale formation can be responsibly developed," said Catherine Reheis-Boyd, president of the Western States Petroleum Association.

'Good first steps'

Environmentalists expressed mixed feelings. They welcomed the draft rules requiring chemical disclosure and public notification, both required by the new law.

"I'd definitely say those are good first steps," said Andrew Grinberg, with Clean Water Action. "However, adequate? No."

Grinberg's group is one of several pushing Brown to ban fracking in California, either permanently or at least until the safety study is complete. Brown has refused. Several groups indicated Friday that the proposed rules hadn't changed their minds.

"The only way we can be in a position to make an intelligent decision about whether fracking can go forward is a time out," said Kathryn Phillips, California director for the Sierra Club.

Coupled with horizontal well drilling, fracking has unleashed a boom in oil and gas production in the United States. Critics say it taints water supplies, worsens air pollution and contributes to global warming because it enables companies to extract oil that otherwise would have remained in the ground.

Fracking in state

More than 1,250 wells in California have been fracked since the start of 2011, according to a website that tracks fracking nationwide.

Acidizing, in contrast, uses powerful acids to open tiny channels in underground rocks, releasing hydrocarbons. California officials don't know how often the practice is used here.

The proposed regulations won't take effect until January 2015. And they could change.

The state will accept public comments on the draft rules for the next 60 days. In addition, the Department of Conservation has scheduled public hearings in January in Bakersfield, Long Beach, Sacramento, Salinas and Santa Maria (Santa Barbara County). The department will then study those comments and possibly make changes to the regulations.

In the meantime, regulators will use an interim set of rules that largely mirror the proposed regulations - with one big exception. Until the new regulations take effect in 2015, oil companies won't need a permit before fracking a well. Instead, they will need to certify to state regulators that their work will comply with all applicable laws and regulations. The department will release more details about the interim rules in December.

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